The International Training Centre for Intangible Cultural Heritage in the Asia-Pacific Region under the auspices of UNESCO (CRIHAP) and the UNESCO Beijing Office co-organized an online capacity-building training workshop on ICH safeguarding for China from Dec 20 to 21, 2021.

The event attracted a total of 92 trainees, including the heads of or representatives from China’s 31 provincial, regional and municipal intangible cultural heritage safeguarding centres. UNESCO ICH facilitator Suzanne Ogge was invited to deliver lectures.

Li Xiaosong, Deputy Director of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Department, China’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism, and Liang Bin, CRIHAP Director-General, attended the opening ceremony of the workshop and delivered speeches.

Susanne Schnuttgen, Chief of the Capacity Building and Heritage Policy Unit of UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Section, and Shahbaz Khan, the UNESCO Beijing Office Director, congratulated the opening of the workshop via live online meeting and recorded video speech respectively.

In his speech, Li Xiaosong said ICH safeguarding in China has found unprecedented opportunities. “Intangible cultural heritage is a witness to cultural diversity. It is necessary for us to safeguard, inherit and make best use of precious ICH items for the continuance of human civilization and sustainable development of the whole world. It is also a shared responsibility for all of us.” He also made two requirements for the trainees. “We need to follow rational guiding principles when it comes to ICH safeguarding. Also, we need to become lifelong learners in this regard.”